


such a simple thing

by kinneyb



Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti)
Genre: Confessions, First Kiss, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-26
Updated: 2019-10-26
Packaged: 2021-01-03 10:02:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,443
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21177599
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kinneyb/pseuds/kinneyb
Summary: A rumor spins out of control. Richie distances himself from his friends. Eddie is not having it.





	such a simple thing

**Author's Note:**

> this is my first reddie fic and i am perhaps embarrassed pls be kind to me ive only seen each movie once so be well aware my characterization and stuff might be fuzzy (also this takes place when they're still young obviously)
> 
> follow me on twitter @ queerwaugh and look at my pinned tweet

Richie's first thought upon seeing Henry's cousin was simple: _he's pretty._ He had golden hair and bright eyes, and most important of all he seemed to actually enjoy Richie's company. They played at the arcade all day together and even late into the night, until finally they were kicked out. For the first time Richie thought maybe he'd found someone who was like him, who thought other boys were pretty.

But reality quickly washed over him when he tried to kiss him later that night; they were in the park together after dark and his light hair seemed to glisten in the moonlight, like something out of a book. He pulled back and looked at Richie like he was out of mind, and he was beginning to think he was right.

"I'm going to tell He-- "

Richie's blood ran cold. He scrambled and reached for the boy's arm, but he pulled away again and stood up. "Please," he begged, "don't."

"I-- " the boy looked away, his hair falling in his face-- the same hair that Richie had thought was so pretty; he gulped. "Fine," he grumbled eventually. "But don't ever do that shit again, okay?"

Richie thought it sounded less like a command and more of a suggestion.

Almost cruelly kind in a way.

"Okay," he agreed quietly.

He was dumb; he really thought that would be the end of it, that Henry's cousin could somehow be a good person. He was wrong.

/

When Richie went to school the next day, he knew something was wrong. Everyone was staring at him. See, one of the advantages of being a loser meant usually no one paid you any attention. Normally Richie, like all his friends, was invisible but not today. Today the spotlight was on him.

He heard the whispers soon after.

"He tried to kiss Henry's cousin."

"No way!"

"I always knew he was a fag."

It was incessant, and worst of all this was only the beginning. Richie rushed into the bathroom and into a stall, locking the door behind him. It was only a matter of time before Henry and his goons found him.

He was going to be _sick_.

Turning around, he emptied his stomach of breakfast and slumped to the floor.

Richie sat there for probably an hour, missed his first few classes of the day. Puked a lot. His stomach was burning by the time he finally heard a knock. He squeezed his eyes shut. Please, God.

"Richie?"

He opened his eyes. "Eddie?" he asked, a bit hoarse from all the vomiting. Clearing his throat, he slowly stood up on shaky legs and unlocked the door.

Eddie opened it immediately and--

"Gross, dude, what the fuck?" he asked, staring at the toilet.

Richie smiled sheepishly. "I don't feel so good," he muttered, an understatement.

"Yeah, I can see that," Eddie said, pinching his nose and grabbing his arm. "Come on."

Eddie dragged him to the sink and stood there, waiting as Richie cleaned his hands and face. Then he dragged him out of the bathroom too, toward the exit. Richie was surprised; Eddie was _not_ known for skipping.

"Um," he said lamely as they pushed through the doors.

Eddie grunted and finally released his arm, walking down the stairs. Richie chased after him, glancing back at the school.

"You can't stay hurdled up in the bathroom all day because of stupid rumors. Just look at Bev," Eddie said as he started down the street, not even sparing a glance behind him. Richie was kind of impressed. "Henry's cousin is a piece of shit." He finally looked at Richie. "Shocking."

Richie swallowed around the lump in his throat.

_Rumors_. Like Beverly had suffered from. Right. His friends would never believe--

"Thanks," he replied, smiling tightly. "But um. I know you don't like skipping, so..."

Eddie reached over and grabbed Richie's arm again, squeezing. Richie breathed in sharply, looking away. "I'll make an exception for my friend," he said firmly. "Come on; since it's school hours the park is probably empty."

He just nodded mutely.

/

"Don't let Henry and his goons make you feel bad," Beverly said, patting Richie's back. "They're all full of shit. Literally and figuratively."

They were all hanging out a few days later at the park. Richie kind of wished they were walking about anything but the recent rumors.

"Thanks, Bev," he muttered, not very convincingly.

She smiled lightly and pulled her hand back. Everyone else was quiet.

Richie felt like there was an itch under his skin he couldn't reach. He looked away and startled when he met Eddie's eyes, full of anger.

"I just wish they'd-- " he huffed and crossed his arms. "I don't know; drop dead."

Stanley looked up. "Hey, that's kind of harsh."

"They're kind of sociopaths," Ben remarked quickly. No one argued with that.

Richie hugged himself tighter. "Can we talk about anything else?" he asked weakly.

"Of course," Bill quickly said. "How about we, like, do something?"

Mike looked up from where he'd been drawing in the dirt with a stick. "Tag?"

Tag was Eddie's least favorite game, mostly because he always ended up gasping for air and was the least athletic. But he was the first one to stand up. "Not it!" he yelled before grinning down at Richie.

The itching finally subsided, replaced with a familiar warmth.

/

The rumors did not disappear. Henry beat up Richie almost every weekend, seeking him out. His friends always showed up after, comforting him.

They never believed the rumors, though. Richie couldn't tell if he was relieved or not.

/

"You do know those stupid rumors aren't your fault, right?" Beverly said one evening, staring at him with wide, earnest eyes. "I know what you're going through-- "

Richie felt like a rubber band that was being pulled too thin. "No!" he snapped, and suddenly all of his friends were staring at him. "You _don't_ understand," he continued, jumping to his feet. "None of you do!"

Eddie and Stanley were up in seconds, both reaching out for him. Eddie's eyes were soft. "Richie, what's going on?"

He laughed sharply. "What's going on? As if any of you need to ask that!" Richie took a step back and shook his head. "I can't-- I can't keep doing this. Just-- leave me alone, okay?"

Turning on his heels, he ran out of Bill's house and didn't stop, just kept running even as he heard Eddie yelling for him.

/

The bullying did not stop. The rumors did not stop. The beatings did not stop. Most importantly, his friends did not stop visiting him. Even when he wouldn't open the door, even when he yelled at them through it.

Richie didn't know what to do. He didn't know how to _feel_.

What was wrong with him? Why had he tried to kiss Henry's cousin?

Why was a boy wanting to kiss other boys such a bad thing?

/

Eventually his friends stopped showing up. Bill, Stanley, Beverly, Mike, Ben. One by one they dropped off until finally-- "Richie?" Eddie called through the door. "You can't keep avoiding us," he continued, but he didn't sound so sure of himself. "Please?"

Richie sat on the other side of the door, listening. Eddie was the only person still bothering to show up, even after weeks of this. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Just go," he muttered quietly.

He wanted to be alone. He felt safest when he was alone and there was no risk of anyone finding out about his secret. Henry's words echoed in his mind: _your dirty, little secret._

"The rumors will stop," Eddie continued softly. "Don't do this, okay?"

Richie leaned his head back against the door. Didn't say anything else. After a few minutes, he heard the familiar sound of footsteps walking away.

/

"We can't just let him-- distance himself from us!" Eddie remarked angrily, pacing the room. "And all for what? Henry and his stupid fucking goons making up _another_ rumor?"

Bill gave him a gentle but firm look and he sighed, plopping on the couch. "You guys agree, though, right?"

Beverly reached over and patted his arm. "We do, Eddie, really, but..."

"It's not like we can bust into his place," Mike finished for her. "If he doesn't _want_ our help--"

Eddie jumped back up. "Hey, that's not fair!"

"Guys, stop!" Bill sighed. "Fi-- fighting each other won't he-- help him."

Eddie huffed loudly and turned away from them, folding his arms over his chest. "Well,_ I_ won't give up on him," he said, pulling his inhaler out and taking a puff.

"Don't say that," Beverly said with a frown. "No one is giving up on him."

Eddie shrugged sharply. "Could've fooled me," he replied, heading for the door.

/

A couple hours after school, like usual, Eddie showed up at his door. Richie stood on the other side and listened as he went on and on.

"The others are worried," he said, quiet. "I'm _really_ worried. I mean, even avoiding us at school?" Eddie turned and leaned against the door. "It's not making a difference, you know-- Henry and his shitty friends won't stop because of this. They won't leave us alone. You're just... hurting yourself for nothing, Richie."

Richie stared at his feet.

"Okay," Eddie said, taking a deep breath. "Just. I'm gonna go, okay? But please, uh." He cleared his throat. "Open the door after I'm gone?"

Richie snorted softly. "I'm not falling for that," he muttered. He wasn't an idiot.

"I'm not tricking you," Eddie said, surprisingly fierce. "Just do it, okay? I'm-- I'm going now."

Richie listened, again, at Eddie's footsteps as he supposedly walked away. Sounded real, at least. He was a fool, he knew, but he turned and opened the door. He sighed; Eddie really had left. There was nothing - or no one - there but... a tiny piece of paper tucked away under a rock.

Blinking, he crouched down and moved the rock.

_If you decide you want to talk, I'll be at the park tonight. 7pm._

His heart skipped a beat.

He was an idiot. Eddie was an idiot.

Richie folded the paper and stood up, shoving it in his pocket.

/

Richie was an idiot, so, he, very predictably, walked to the park at seven. It was mostly dark but the streetlights illuminated everything in a soft, golden glow. He thought back to Henry's cousin hair and swallowed thickly. Also, very predictably, was Eddie on one of the swings in a t-shirt, jacket, and sweatpants.

He walked toward him, slow.

"You-- you actually came," Eddie breathed, bright eyed. "I wasn't sure-- I mean, I'm-- "

Richie shushed him, not unkindly, and sat on the swing to his left. "Eddie, you're my best friend," he said, staring up at the stars. "More than any of the other losers. It's-- it's you. You're my best friend."

Eddie blinked a few times. "I know," he replied softly. "Which is why I wanna help."

"You can't," Richie remarked sharply. "Because..." he took a deep breath. "The rumor isn't-- it's not a rumor." He finally looked away from the stars, into the stars that lived in Eddie's eyes. His heart squeezed. "I did it."

Eddie squinted at him. "I don't understand. Did what?"

He laughed, sad and defeated. "I tried to kiss Henry's cousin."

"Oh."

Richie looked away again, felt the familiar burn of tears. He should've known better.

"Okay," Eddie continued after a moment. "That's-- okay. I'm glad you told me."

Really, that had been the easy part. Richie sniffed and rubbed at his eyes. "That's not all," he said, barely above a whisper.

"Don't cry," Eddie said.

_Fuck_. This would've been easier if Eddie had acted grossed out, pushed him away.

Slowly, Richie turned and looked at him again. "He's not the person I really wanted to kiss," he whispered. "It was never... him or anyone else. I just-- " he stopped and pursed his lips, swallowing a sob. "I didn't-- I couldn't risk losing _you_."

Eddie stared back at him. "I don't understand," he said softly.

"I know," Richie breathed, standing up and taking a deep breath. He took a step to the right and stopped in front of Eddie, staring down at him. "I like you, Eddie. Like-- as more than a friend. Like Ben and Bill like Beverly."

Eddie nodded. "Okay," he said again.

"And I know I shouldn't," Richie continued, shaky. "I know you don't want me to. I just-- I don't know what to do. I really, really don't." He reached up and gripped his own hair. "I think I'm literally losing my mind."

Eddie stood up suddenly and grabbed his shoulders. "Richie, that's-- I don't know. God, the-- the fear I felt when I thought... I thought this was it. You never wanted anything to do with me again."

"I could never want that," he said.

Eddie squeezed his shoulders. "All of this because-- because you wanted to kiss _me_?"

"You don't like boys," Richie whispered, "or germs."

Eddie laughed sharply. "One of those things is based purely on speculation," he said, biting the inside of his cheek. "And only _one_ of them is true," he continued quietly, "but you wouldn't know that because you never _asked_ me."

Richie stared at him, snotty and disgusting. Eddie didn't even flinch. "What?"

"I-- I thought I was the weird one," he continued quietly. "I'm not-- I like boys too, Richie," he whispered.

Richie sniffed loudly, head spinning with a million thoughts. "Why didn't you tell me?" he whispered softly.

"For the same reason you didn't," he remarked. "I was-- I still _am_ scared. I've always been a coward, you know that." He smiled lightly. "But you're not, and you got punished for it." Eddie looked away and shook his head. "I'm so-- so sorry, Richie. I should've-- I should've been there for you."

Richie reached up and slowly wrapped his arms around the other boy. "Is this okay?"

Eddie laughed wetly and buried his face in Richie's shoulder, took a deep breath. "More than okay," he answered quietly, slightly muffled. "Hey, Richie," he pulled back just a little. "Do you still want to?"

"What?" he asked, searching Eddie's eyes for an answer.

Eddie smiled, a bit shy. "Kiss me?" he asked softly.

Richie's eyes widened. He let out a sharp breath. "Are you-- can I?"

"Yes," he answered simply.

Richie's heart thrummed loudly. He lurched forward and pressed their lips together. When they separated, Eddie cleared his throat and reached up, adjusting Richie's glasses. "I'm always going to be a coward. You know that, right?"

"That's okay," he replied. "I'm brave enough for both of us."


End file.
